Description

This area has climbing similar to Liberty Cap (on same cliff band). Many quality crack climbs of various grades are available. There are around 10-15 climbs.

Getting There

From I-70, take the Fruita exit 19 and head south on highway 340 (Broadway), over the Colorado River, past Rimrock, past the Monument Canyon Trailhead, and 0.8 miles more until you get to South Broadway.

Turn right on South Broadway. In about 0.6 of a mile the road will veer left and run alongside the monument. Very shortly after, about 0.2 of a mile on the right hand side, will be a break in the fence and about enough room to park two or three cars. This is the Gold Star Canyon trail head.

From the break in the fence take the trail that heads off left and hike for a little over a mile, staying down low near the fence, then look for a small game trail on the right that heads to the upper tier. It will be just before a big drainage of metamorphic rock. Walk up that and the cliffs will be on the right hand of the U-shaped/ bowl of sandstone wall.

This is one of those hidden random gems of The Monument. Ascend a steep dihedral system with a ledge halfway up for a breather. Battle some moderate Chinle, and continue up a great splitter as it changes sizes from fingers to hands to big hands in places....[more]Browse More Classics in CO

Approach takes about 15-20 minutes. It's really short, like under a mile, but very steep.

Also, once you cross the fence you want to follow the trail right until you are under a bit of the hill that is less steep than surrounding areas. This is just past the obvious large drainage. From here you follow a faint game/climbers trail up the hill and into a a small drainage. Sometimes the start of the trail has cairns, sometimes not.

Yeah, I ran into the same deal and actually spoke with the lady that put some of those signs up. She was super friendly and took the time to pull out a map and tell me where the "actual" access point was. The whole time I was wondering how a hiker strolling through the drainage was more intrusive than me knocking on her door and going through all this trouble. Anyway, I would love to get to the bottom of all the access disputes that seem to be popping up for The Monument. This is now the third place in the last year Ihave ran into this for The Monument!

The WCCC has been investigating this and has found that as far as the authorities, park and local, the trail is not to be used as an access point. Though originally all drainage coming from the monument were legal access points that were supposed to be upheld in perpetuity, the reality is that all the new subdivisions and building up against The Monument has created a land divisions that do not include these access points, so legally the landowners are told they have some sort of right to the land. Possibly this issue could be raised in court and perhaps something made of it. However, I would suggest, and the WCCC will help to enforce the land owners' wishes. We will be making some signs with a map to put up at this access point to route people to the correct parking and trail head. This is unfortunate as the hike is longer, and this will prove issue with access to other buttresses such as Supercrack of the Monument and the buttress adjacent to Tiara Rado.

Please do not use this trail head and help us keep civil relations with landowners. If anyone is to be blamed, it is possibly the City Planning or the authorities not wanting to peruse the issue and just ruling in favor of the landowner. If you have any questions direct them to the WCCC email: Western_co_climbers@hotmail.com

It seems as though it was other people hanging out and drinking back in this area that shut down this access point. According to Phil Akers, ranger at CNM, this was never a legal access point but this is something that is currently being debated. When I asked him why rangers have been telling people that this was a legal access he did not comment. Phil did say the monument has been working with Mesa County GIS to determine all of the legal access points to the monument and a map will be put out as soon as it is ready.

New directions: From Broadway, Turn onto South Broadway just west of 19 ˝ road about 0.8 of a mile east on Broadway from the Monument Canyon trailhead. About 0.6 of a mile the road will veer left and run alongside the monument, Very shortly after, about 0.2 of a mile on the right hand side will be a break in the fence and about enough room to park two or three cars. This is the Gold Star Canyon trail head. From the break in the fence take the trail that heads off left and hike for a little over a mile (basically till your back over by the old drainage access), then look for a small game trail on the right that heads to the upper tier. It will be just before a big drainage of metamorphic rock. Walk up that and the cliffs will be on the right hand of the U-shaped/ bowl of sandstone wall.